Blog with Deb
Terrorism: Overcoming Fear with Faith
This past week, the topic of conversation nearly everywhere I went, was the tragic terrorist attacks in Paris. The horror of what happened there and in other places--Lebanon, Nigeria, and now Mali, is beyond belief. How can this happen? How can a group of people have...
You Are Enough: Overcoming Negativity
I recently enjoyed some coffee time with a few girl friends at the delightful 3 Bears Cafe and Quilts in our small town. It's the kind of place where you feel good just being there, surrounded by bolts of bright-colored fabrics and a warm, welcoming atmosphere. Our...
Unassuming Heroes: Wildland Firefighters
When we moved to the Methow Valley in North Central Washington almost 20 years ago, my husband Randy and I were naive about the risks of wildfires. We purchased some property in a high risk fire area, not thinking about the implications of building a home in the...
Why You Shouldn’t Give Up on Your Marriage
I heard the news that a young couple in our community is getting a divorce after only one year of marriage. What went wrong? All I know is this is a tragedy. I remember the wedding announcement we received with their bright smiling faces, their eyes so filled with...
Life Lessons From a Dog Named Kramer
I knew the day was coming, but I didn't expect it to arrive so soon. "Soon" is relative, because 15 years can seem like a long time or pass by in a blink. It's the blink side I'm experiencing today. We said goodbye to our faithful canine friend, Kramer, two days ago....
God’s Extravagant Love: It Can Change Everything!
Several years ago, just before Christmas, my boss and his wife treated my co-workers and me to an afternoon of extravagance. Each of us was pampered with a massage, facial and manicure. As I lay on the massage table having the yummiest-smelling creams applied to my...
Watch for the Light
It's an early morning in December, still dark outside. I curl up into the overstuffed couch, wrapped in my pink fleece robe. Efforts to get up and be productive are more of a challenge these days with cold, gray mornings and frigid temperatures icing the windows. I...
Be a Burden Bearer
When I was 33-years old, I slipped on an icy sidewalk and fractured my knee cap. Ouch! I never dreamed how much something that looked like a simple "skinned knee" could impact my life. In an instant, I had been sidelined. It was as if God had grabbed me and said,...
After the Firestorm: Finding Out What Matters Most
The view from our house on July 17, 2014I've never been so happy to turn a calendar page as I was at the end of August. I flipped the page from August to September, breathing a guarded sigh of relief. Our world has been rocked by the firestorm that blew up on July 17....
What I’ve Learned through a Lifetime of Marriage
My husband Randy and I recently celebrated 44 years of marriage. Our anniversary celebration at Steak 'N Shake Wow--how can that be possible when we're only 30+ years old? Well... we haven't been that age for a long time, but it's still hard to imagine we've spent...